Chapter 1735: Hundred Races of the Spirit Realm — The Great Enemy Arrives

In the next instant, two streaks of strange light—one black, one silver—flashed before Han Li. The small black mountain and the silver firebird both shrank to miniature size and appeared floating before him.

With a sweep of his sleeve, they vanished without a trace.

The hundred-odd streaks of azure sword light that had been interwoven with the artifacts of Old Man Yan and his companion let out a clear ringing cry as well, then shot backward in retreat.

Under the flickering void, these flying swords returned to Han Li's side in the blink of an eye, shrunk to the size of small fish, and vanished into his body.

Even the small yellow cauldron that had been drifting motionlessly in midair—abandoned after losing its owner—was caught in his grasp.

After sweeping every treasure from the sky completely clean, Han Li flapped the wings behind his back and immediately transformed into a streak of azure-white lightning that shot outward. In just a few flashes, he vanished without a trace beyond the horizon.

Only Old Man Yan and the woman in the blood-red light were left behind, staring blankly at each other.

Having witnessed how Han Li had slain the green-haired alien cultivator moments before, the two were naturally filled with wariness and dared not recklessly give chase.

Treasures might be precious, but one needed one's life to enjoy them.

However, after exchanging a cautious glance, the old man and the woman each looked toward the black waters and fire clouds surging toward them from the distance—and their reactions diverged sharply.

The woman remained perfectly still within her halo of blood-red light, seeming to pay no attention to the approaching phenomena whatsoever, while Old Man Yan's face darkened. He abruptly pointed at the white-cloud artifact hovering in the air.

The artifact trembled, then transformed into a sheet of brilliant white radiance that swept him up, tearing through the sky in another direction.

The speed of his escape was remarkably close to Han Li's own—hardly any slower than one who had employed lightning movement.

And so, the woman in the blood-red palace robes was left alone in this place.

Her fine brows knitted tightly together, she stared at the fire clouds and black waters hurtling toward her, lost in silent deliberation.

A moment later, the flames and the dark waters rolled in nearly simultaneously with a thunderous roar, then came to an abrupt halt directly above her.

"Xue Ying, my dear girl—that Zhixian, tell me, did it fall into your hands?" After the fire clouds churned for a moment, a massive head over thirty feet long suddenly took shape within them—the enormous head of the giant toad.

At this moment, the demonic beast's skin was flushed red as fire, its eyes were shut tight, and a fist-sized gray pearl had appeared in the center of its forehead, pulsing with an eerie glow.

"Uncle Tie, you jest. Whether I have the Zhixian on my person or not—couldn't you tell at a single glance? If I had truly obtained that spirit creature, I would have fled long ago. I certainly wouldn't be standing here waiting for you, Uncle." The palace-robed woman showed no fear, replying with respectful composure.

"Hmph. You're just like old Xue Bi—outwardly honest, but cunning to the bone. Had I not asked, how could I leave in peace? But if you're lying to me, you know full well what the consequences will be." A cold snort rumbled from the giant toad's mouth, its voice dripping with menace.

It appeared that this demonic beast had been possessed by its master, that Iron-Winged Demon.

"Enough of this pointless chatter. We should be chasing after that Zhixian. You promised me that if I helped you seize it, you would hand over the Glazed Water Bead." From the black waters beside them, a dark, ferocious head suddenly emerged—the creature's elongated, broad-jawed maw lined with rows of razor-sharp fangs.

"Mo E, you've only just advanced to the Saint tier. You haven't even begun to consolidate your realm properly, so I'd advise you to watch your tone. Otherwise, even though only an incarnation of mine is present here, it would be more than enough to knock you back down to your original form." The giant toad's voice turned cold as it barked at the newly arrived creature.

"Oh? Is that so? I'd very much like to test whether you truly possess such formidable power right now." The demonic crocodile's eyes flashed with savage light, its reply defiant and unyielding.

Upon hearing this, the giant toad's expression soured. The gray bead between its brows flickered, and the surrounding fire clouds surged violently upward.

Across from it, the demonic crocodile opened its massive jaws, and the black waters in every direction immediately began to churn and swell. The two seemed on the verge of coming to blows once more.

"Forget it—for the sake of your former master, I won't bicker with you. As long as we obtain the Zhixian, I will naturally hand over the Glazed Water Bead. Surely you don't doubt my word?" The giant toad's face twitched several times, and it seemed to harbor some reservations about the demonic crocodile, forcibly suppressing its anger before speaking in a frigid tone.

"In any case, you are a Saint-tier existence among our Holy Clan, so I suppose you wouldn't go back on your word. Let's give chase. But since the Zhixian isn't with the girl here, then it must be with that outsider who fled. Shall we ask her?" The demonic crocodile let out a strange, rasping laugh.

"Ask her? While she may indeed not have the Zhixian, do you think she and Xue Bi would want it to fall into my hands? There are only two of them anyway—you and I each take one. That way, not a single one escapes." The giant toad spoke with indifferent calm.

"Very well, let's do it that way. I'll go after the one who fled in that direction. If I get the Zhixian, I'll return here to exchange it with you for the Glazed Water Bead." The demonic crocodile let out a wild, booming laugh, retracted its head back into the black waters, and was gone.

Immediately, a rumbling roar rose once more as the vast expanse of black waters surged forward, chasing after Old Man Yan in the direction he had fled.

Within the fire clouds, the giant toad said nothing further either. The surrounding flames rolled together and surged toward the opposite stretch of sky.

That was the direction Han Li had taken.

In the blink of an eye, this stretch of space once again held only the palace-robed woman in blood-red, her expression shifting between light and shadow.